Supervisors and teachers' influence on expectations on empowering leadership among students in vocational education and training

Abstract

Background: Empowering leadership practise among leaders in the construction industry contributes to improve occupational safety, by stimulating participative safety behaviour among construction workers. Socialization into working life in the construction industry begins during vocational education and training (VET). It is therefore important to understand how VET influence young people's expectations on empowering leadership, i.e. their implicit leadership theories (ILT). The aim of the present study was to assess if empowering ILT of students change during VET, and if students' empowering ILT are influenced by the empowering leadership practice of teachers and workplace supervisors that the students interact with during VET. Methods: Questionnaire data were gathered from students (n = 1907) at seven construction VET-schools in Sweden and Denmark at two occasions, 1 year apart. Accelerated longitudinal design was employed and data were analysed using mixed method growth curve modelling. Results: The empowering ILT of the VET-students was found to increase during VET. The leadership of supervisors', but not of teachers', was found to be positively related to the empowering ILT of the VET-students. Conclusions: VET-students, in the beginning of their professional life, appear to alter their beliefs and assumptions about the characteristics of effective leaders. The ILT of VET-students may thus be regarded as dynamic and responsive, inclined to change as the students socialize into working life. © The Author(s) 2017.

Keywords

Author Keywords

VET Construction industry occupational safety socialization Empowering leadership Implicit leadership theory Safety leadership

Index Keywords

Author Affiliations

Department of Occupational Medicine, Regional Hospital West Jutland - University Research Clinic and Danish Ramazzini Centre, Herning, Denmark

School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Sahlgrenska Akademin, Gothenburg, Vastra Gotaland, Sweden

Funding & Acknowledgements

Grant: 01-2012-09

This work was part of the SveDan project, funded by the Danish Working Environment Research Fund under Grant Number 01-2012-09; the Health Research Fund of Central Denmark Region; and AFA Insurance under Grant Number 120176. None of the funding bodies participated in any part of the research.

AFA Försäkring

Grant: 120176

This work was part of the SveDan project, funded by the Danish Working Environment Research Fund under Grant Number 01-2012-09; the Health Research Fund of Central Denmark Region; and AFA Insurance under Grant Number 120176. None of the funding bodies participated in any part of the research.

Health Research Fund of Central Denmark Region

This work was part of the SveDan project, funded by the Danish Working Environment Research Fund under Grant Number 01-2012-09; the Health Research Fund of Central Denmark Region; and AFA Insurance under Grant Number 120176. None of the funding bodies participated in any part of the research.

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Supervisors and teachers' influence on expectations on empowering leadership among students in vocational education and training

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